Chrono Trigger Prophecies Chapter 5
Fallen Star
By Jerm
Of all the things Janus would have expected, this was not it. He would have expected to be forced to dive underwater in order to find the place, it would have surely sunk. But as he looked at the island in front of him, he could only think of two things. Either the water wasn't quite as deep here, or he had just been dragged 2 days out into the middle of nowhere by a madman. He didn't like the latter.
"What is this?" Janus finally asked, when Antold and Azel had filed in behind him.
"Huh?" Antold asked, walking up beside him and looking for what would have surprised him.
"This! Zeal should have sunk into the ocean!" Janus was angry now, "Where have you taken me?"
Antold snorted, "You mean you don't trust me, is that it?" he shook his head sadly, "This is Zeal. Trust me on that, and you will find out for yourself shortly after."
Janus looked back at the island, trying to figure out how much he should believe. As he scanned the rock, he realized that it was indeed a bit familiar. But he didn't lower his guard. Finally, he sighed, "I'll be back in an hour at least, a day at most."
"We'll be back. I'm not--" Antold began.
"You are going to stay right here," Janus snapped, "I know this place, you don't."
Antold shook his head and snorted again, "How can you be so sure you know this place better than me? I've been visiting this place for well over three months now. How long has it been since you've been here?"
"That's not the point," Janus turned to leave, preparing to step into the rowboat.
"That's the point you tried to raise," Antold answered.
Janus glared at Azel, whose silence had annoyed him a bit, "And you? You have anything to say?"
She mutely shook her head, glaring darkly at the wizard. Antold glared at Janus, as well, obviously not happy about this. Janus ignored the looks and stepped into the boat.
"If it makes you feel any better, I'll pay you for this trip," Janus said, as he was lowered into the water.
"You'll pay alright. . ." Antold said, turning to head back to his cabin.
Behind him, he heard a splash as the boat reached the water. Then the grinding of wood on metal and the quiet splashing of water reached his ears as Janus began to row away.
". . .Magus."
Janus stepped out of the boat. The ground crunched under his boot as he stepped on the loose rocks and gravel, wet from the constant buffeting by the waves. Most of the island was rock, now. The waterfall had long since stopped, as had the whole river. The grass had mostly died away, after having been devoid of their magic. Only moss and stray blades of grass knotted the rock. the place had been nearly reshaped completely, the crash had obviously done damage to it.
Not knowing where he was or where he should head, Janus simply decided to climb. The castle was on the highest part of the island, so he would find it eventually this way. Unless it had collapsed from the fall. The stonemasons had built the castle to be tough, but its survival was still under question. Either way, he would have to search.
He began to walk.
"How's he coming along?"
"Not too good. Still no sign of recovery, it may be a while. Maybe a day or maybe weeks. For all I know, it could be forever."
"Oh. . ."
"The best thing to do is to just let him rest."
"Okay, I'll be outside for a while then."
Janus stumbled on a loose rock and pitched over. His hands swung out by instinct and caught the rock before he fell onto it. Janus pulled himself back up, examining his hands. No scratches or any bruises, he would be okay.
He had been climbing for about 2 hours now. Looking up, he could see that he still needed to climb quite a ways, perhaps a whole other hour. However, Janus was not tired yet. He wasn't even breathing heavily. He could finish the climb.
He took another step, and began to walk again. It was not that much further now. The sun hung overhead, shining dimly through the clouds and dreary air. It was around noon at the moment, though it was still extremely cold. It was getting colder as he climbed.
But at the same time, he didn't feel the chill.
.